Photo: AlexiusHoratius · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Stratford
Stratford isn’t graded for hazard risk: Stratford has 950 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 13 claims here since 1979.
What Stratford faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
Does Stratford flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Stratford, from FEMA’s records.
Stratford isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Coos County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Stratford
Disasters that paid out in Stratford itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Stratford), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storm and Flooding$53K to the Town of Stratford for repairs
- 2023Severe Storms and Flooding$13K to the Town of Stratford for repairs
- 2011Severe Storms and Flooding$28K to the Town of Stratford for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2008Severe Storms and Flooding$9K to the Town of Stratford for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$17K to the Town of Stratford for repairs
Coos County has had 22 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Stratford after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Stratford archive →Stratford and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northumberland | Dmore damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Brunswick | — | 109 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Maidstone | — | 241 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Bloomfield | — | 234 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Columbia | — | 683 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Stark | — | 419 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Stratford faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Stratford
Does Stratford flood?
Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Stratford since 1979, $58K in all.
Is Stratford in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Coos County, 11% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Stratford?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Stratford’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Stratford?
By FEMA money that reached Stratford, Severe Storm and Flooding (2024): $53K to the Town of Stratford for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Stratford.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Stratford’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.